


Maybe Next Year

by TheMightyFlynn



Series: New Year's Countdown [4]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Domestic Fluff, M/M, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-11
Updated: 2017-12-11
Packaged: 2019-02-13 16:54:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12988377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMightyFlynn/pseuds/TheMightyFlynn
Summary: They all know Santa isn't real, but they keep up the delusion.





	Maybe Next Year

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt: I saw Daddy kissing Santa Claus.

_Santa Claus isn’t real_.

This is a truth that Elspeth Wood knew at the advanced age of six-and-three-quarters. It wasn’t through any mistake made by anyone; not really. Her Grandparents kept up the delusion that Santa was real, so did her Da. Well, so did everyone she spoke with, really. She _was_ only six-and-three-quarters years old, after all.

She knew that she wasn’t _supposed_ to have worked out that Santa isn’t real on her own. But, honestly? If she was asked directly one day? She would tell. She would tell the world: _I saw my Daddy kissing Santa Claus_.

That was when she had worked it all out. Because her Da was madly in love and it wasn’t with some old fat guy who dropped presents down the chimney. No, Elspeth’s stepdad was her Da’s true love. They’d gone to school together, but they hadn’t gotten married then. If they had, then Elspeth wouldn’t exist to know that Santa Claus isn’t real. But they were married now and _so_ happy. Elspeth _liked_ that her stepdad made her Da that happy.

So, she kept up the delusion. She played along when people asked her if she was excited that Santa was coming soon. She even pretended to think that the Muggle dressed up in that ridiculous costume was the ‘real’ Santa. But, she knew; _she_ _knew_. Maybe she would tell them next year.

*~*  


“Elspeth’s watching us from the stairs, you know.”

Oliver grinned as he watched Marcus adjusting the Santa Claus costume. “Yeah, I know.”

“You know that that means that we’ve destroyed the whole ‘Santa Claus brings the presents’ thing, right?”

Marcus stood in the middle of their living room, the oversize Santa costume hanging loosely from his shoulders. The false beard and red, fur-trimmed hat that came with the outfit sat on the back of the lounge beside him. Oliver ran his eyes up him, taking in the clunky black boots, the ill-fitting clothing and his charmed-white eyebrows. His normally stormy grey eyes stared at Oliver from beneath those white eyebrows, holding a humour that he knew Marcus was probably trying to hide. He smiled as he moved to wrap his arms around his husband’s shoulders.

“She worked it out for herself last year.” 

He leant in to place a soft kiss on Marcus’ lips. He tasted like mint-flavoured hot chocolate, leading Oliver to kiss him properly. When Marcus’ strong arms wrapped around his waist, Oliver grinned. He always got such a sense of security when Marcus held him close that it was difficult to force himself to step away. He let out a soft sigh when Marcus pulled back.

“Do you want to do the charm, or should I?”

Marcus raised a white eyebrow at him. “You know I hate this part, right?”

Oliver’s grin widened. “Yes, but having a bit more to hold onto for a while is entertaining for me, so…”

He raised his wand, still grinning. The look on Marcus’ face was reluctant, but Oliver knew it was at least partially put on. Marcus loved dressing up for Elspeth; seeing a bright happiness light her eyes as she watched him. They got along better than Oliver could have ever hoped they would. Oliver muttered the _Engorgio_ the second Marcus closed his eyes and nodded.

The transformation was fascinating. Oliver knew that the wizards he had seen over the years who dressed up as Santa were either naturally shaped that way, or were under a similar charm, but he had never seen the effects first-hand until the previous year. Marcus’ arse was the first affected. Then, his thighs and stomach. They ballooned along with the charm, giving him the body-shape needed to play Santa for a little girl who knew Santa wasn’t real. His face was the last place the charm filled out, bulging his cheeks out a little and giving him jowls. Oliver stepped forward before Marcus reopened his eyes.

“Come here often?” He placed a hand on Marcus’ magically-swollen belly. “Think I would recognise someone of your… visibility.”

“Fuck off, Wood.” Marcus’ eyes opened and he glanced down, shaking his head. “The things I do for you…”

“Ah, yes, but you will be rewarded well for this one. I promise.” Oliver stood on his toes to be able to lean over the belly to place another kiss on Marcus’ lips. “Come on. We have a child to not surprise at all.”

Marcus grinned, his chubby cheeks bulging. “When are you going to tell her we know that _she_ knows Santa isn’t real?”

Oliver, still on his toes so he could place the fake beard and hat on Marcus’ head, shook his head absently. “Maybe next year.”


End file.
